"They put out every smokescreen there was" - Peter King on how the Steelers worked to acquire Kenny Pickett in NFL Draft
The Pittsburgh Steelers shocked everyone last Thursday night in the first round of the 2022 NFL draft when they selected Kenny Pickett as the 20th-overall pick.
Peter King spoke about the Steelers drafting Pickett on The Herd with Colin Cowherd. King said that Pittsburgh were always sold on Pickett and put out every smoke screen, so teams didn't know how interested they were in him. King said:
"As far as a football fit goes, I can tell you that they have been sort of interested in Kenny Pickett for a long time. They obviously didn't want anybody to know because they didn't want to have to trade up for it. So they put out every smokescreen there was."
He went on to describe how they did it:
"They went and had a great meal with Malik Willis and all these other guys but they knew for quite a while that this is the guy they really want."
There were several reports that the Steelers were interested in other top quarterbacks. Ian Rapoport tweeted on April 6th that Pittsburgh were one of the most interested teams in Cincinnati quarterback Desmond Ridder.
The #Steelers have been one of the most interested teams when it comes to QB draft prospects and it all picks up soon: Cincinnati QB Desmond Ridder flies to PIT tonight for a visit tomorrow and then UNC QB Sam Howell has his #Steelers visit on Friday. Steelers pick 20th overall.
The Steelers even had a visit and dinner with Liberty quarterback Malik Willis.
Liberty quarterback Malik Willis visits with Steelers to wrap up top 30 process #Steelers #NFL triblive.com/sports/liberty… https://t.co/cZn1gFnNrN
Kenny Pickett will have a chance to compete for the starting for the Steelers with Mitchell Trubisky
Pittsburgh's intentions in drafting Pickett were to become the eventual franchise quarterback of the team following Ben Roethlisberger's departure. Mike Tomlin stated that Pickett is ready for the NFL and loves how he's a ridiculous competitor. Tomlin said:
"We thought he had pro-level anticipation. We thought he had pro-level accuracy. Often times, those are two variables that really require a lot of adjustment from a quarterbacking standpoint. We felt he came ready-made in those ways. Hopefully, that's an asset to him in terms of being able to compete and being ready, if his performance dictates it. "
He went on to say:
"One of the things that was very evident about Kenny being next door is he's just a ridiculous competitor, so we're just excited about putting him in the mix and watching him compete against Mitch and Mason and seeing where that leads us."
Pittsburgh signed Mitchell Trubisky to a two-year deal in the off-season as insurance for the position. It will be a battle between Pickett and Trubisky in training camp to see who wins the starting job.
Pittsburgh finished last season 9-7-1 before being eliminated 42-21 by the Kansas City Chiefs in the wildcard round. The Steelers will be looking to hit the ground running with a new quarterback, following Roethlisberger's retirement.